EPISODE 38: OLIVIA BAREHAM: FINDING BEAUTY & HEALING IN DEATH

OLIVIA BAREHAM is a death midwife. I didn't know those existed either, but what a wonderful blessing she offers to both the dying and those left behind. We talk about the home funeral, the living funeral, ancient and modern rituals -- and how her training as a healer intersected with the AIDS epidemic, leading to her calling to provide a spiritual and healing transition for the dying. We deal with the questions of: What is grief? What does it mean to die? What have we lost as a culture with funeral homes? What does it mean to be human? How do we find the beauty in the inevitable? Heavy stuff, but why not?